Charles j



c. J. CONWAY.

Lamp.

Patented July 19, 1853.

UNITED STATES PATENT orFIoE.

CHARLES J. CONWAY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

LAMP.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 9,857, dated July 19, 1853.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES JAMES CON- WAY, of New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented a new and useful lamp for the burning of illuminating liquids of any description with safety and other peculiar advantages, which I term the Reservoir-Lamp.

The objects of my invention are, first, to make the base of the lamp serve as a reservoir for the burning fluid; secondly, to establish such a communication between the reservoir and the wick-chamber, that the latter may be supplied from the former, at any moment, by simply changing the position of the lamp; and thirdly, to prevent any danger of explosion, when the fluid used is of an explosive nature, by keeping it constantly confined within permanent and flame-tight limits. The principle of construction by which these objects are eifected is essentially as follows, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which like letters refer to like parts.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the lamp; and Fig. 2 is a vertical section wit-hout the burners.

A is a cylinder on the top of which the burners are attached, being soldered on and not movable. The upper part of the cylinder A is divided from the lower part by a transverse partition, thus forming a cham ber, shown at o in Fig. 2, which I term the wick chamber, and into which the wicks are .passed through the burners at their upper extremities. The tubes (Z and 0 enter this chamber through the bottom, to which they are closely soldered, and terminate at about one eighth of an inch from the top of the chamber a or cylinder A. These two tubes are placed at opposite sides of the cylinder, (i being at the front side toward 79 in the base (Figs. 1 and 2) and c on the opposite side. (In Fig. 1 that part of the lamp is presented in front which in Fig. 2 is toward the left.) The tubecZ is about one fourth of an inch in diameter, and 6 about one eighth of an inch; they are both open at the upper extremities.

The cylinder A is soldered on to the top of the base B and is thus closed at the bottom, but the tubes d and 6 both pass through the top of the base and communicate with the interior, the lower extremity of d being open and flush with the top of the base B to which it is soldered, and c,

after passing through the top of the base, to which it is also soldered, forms an elbow or right-angle, and running along immediately under the top of the base, terminates at about one eighth of an inch from the back of the base, the extremity being open; this part of the tube is shown at e in Fig. 2. All that part of the cylinder A between the chamber 0 and the base is thus closed in,

and has no communication with the other parts of the lamp.

The base of the lamp, B, is a hollow tri angular prism, and forms the reservoir from which the wick chamber 0 is filled and replenished. The place at which the fluid is poured into the reservoir is shown at f which is a small cylinder with a movable cap or cover. Three tubes of one eighth of an inch diameter and half an inch length each, pass through the bottom of this cylinder f into the reservoir, the upper extremities of two of them being flush with the bottom of the cylinder, and the third having its upper end one fourth of an inch above, and its lower end one fourth of an inch below, the bottom of the cylinder.

The lamp is operated as follows. The wicks are introduced into the wick-chamber by first tying one extremity of the cotton tightly with a piece of thread, then introducing that end of the wick into the burner, it can be readily thrust down to the bottom of the wick-chamber, by means of a straight thin wire. The fluid for the supply of the lamp is poured into the cylinder from a can or filler with a small spout, and flows through the small tubes at the bottom into the reservoir, while the air escapes upward, through the tube which eX- tends above the bottom of the cylinder 1.

F, is an enlarged sectional view of cylinder f and tubes, without the cap.

lWhen the reservoir is full or has a sufficient quantity of fluid in it, the cap or cover is put on j, and the lamp is held in a horizontal position, so that the angle at the base marked p shall be the lowest point, and the opposite side of the base the highest part. The consequence of this position is that the fluid in the reservoir flows into the wick-chamber 0 through the tube d, while the air escapes through the tube 6 6 into the reservoir and promotes the flow of the fluid. WVhen the ends of the wicks show a complete saturation, which will be in a few moments, the lamp is returned to a tact with the wicks is nearly exhausted, the.

lamp may be held in a horizontal position, without extinguishing the lights, and the wick-chamber will thus be immediately replenished. By this means a light of uniform brilliancy can be maintained.

The advantages of this lamp over those in ordinary use are as follows: First, a larger quantity of fluid can be contained in it, so that it will not require filling so often; secondly, a more uniform light can be maintained; thirdly, it does not unscrew at the top, and consequently no gas can possibly escape in that direction; fourthly, it is secure from explosion or bursting when an explosive liquid is used; for the liquid or gas generated from it can only be ignited by the contact of flame, and the only apertures leading to the interior of this lamp are the burners or wick tubes, and the small tubes through which the fluid is poured into the reservoir, and it is impossible, as I have proved by repeated experiment, to make flame pass through any of these tubes. Lastly there is no danger from the bursting of the lamp by the too rapid generation of the gas within it, as any excessive pressure within the wick-chamber is prevented by its communication with the reservoir through the tubes d and c, by which means the gas or vapor is conducted down into the colder liquid in the reservoir and there condensed, the large area of radiating surface, and the distance of the reservoir from the lights, preventing the body of the fluid from becoming at any time too much heated.

In this invention I do not claim as my discovery the peculiar property of small tubes preventing the passage of flame, neither do I claim the making the base of the lamp serve as a reservoir for the fluid used, nor do I claim the construction by which no part is made movable but the cap of the' feeding tube ;but

hat I do claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

That peculiar construction, by which two chambers or reservoirs are combined in the same lamp, one contalnlng the wlcks and i the fluid which saturates them, and the other forming the receptacle into which the fluid is poured, and the two chambers communicating by means of two pipes or tubes, the whole arranged and operating as described, by which means the wick chamber is filled, and may at any time be replenished from the larger reservoir, by simply changing the position of the lamp from a vertical to a horizontal direction; and the larger reservoir may be supplied without bringing the can or filler near the burners.

CHARLES JAMES CONWAY.

Witnesses:

L. JACOBSOHN, H. J. CONWAY. 

